Ithaca College

A two-part concert series coined "Brother Souls -- Alter Egos?"  to feature the complete piano transcriptions from Richard Wagner's operas by Franz Liszt and others. 

A famous pair of like-minded artists--known the world over as geniuses in their field--German composer Franz Liszt (1811-1886) and Hungarian composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883) even became family, when Cosima (Liszt’s second daughter) became Wagner’s second wife. Being age-wise contemporaries, however, they actually knew each other long before that family tie was made, and Liszt had already been instrumental in ushering Wagner’s difficult music to the world as promoter, conductor, pianist and composer.  

Indeed, Liszt often masterly transcribed excerpts from Wagner’s gigantic orchestral and operatic works for the piano and performed these insistently on his concert tours, as well as published and shared them with his students and with fellow professionals.  All this lent a critical, helping hand to Wagner’s progressive recognition and eventual establishment as one of the foremost composers of his time and beyond.

Presenting an uncommonly ambitious project by any standards in celebration of Wagner’s 200th birth anniversary, Charis Dimaras, IC School of Music piano faculty member, will perform with his students the complete piano transcriptions from Richard Wagner’s operas by Franz Liszt (and others) in two concerts.

Unfolding across two consecutive Friday evenings--September 6 and 13--the concerts will take place in Hockett Family Recital Hall at 7:00 p.m. and are free and open to the public.

Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations should contact the School of Music at 607-274-3717. We ask that requests for accommodations be made as soon as possible.